Welcome to Eflash November 2016!
In this month's news letter we cover;
- A day in the life of...
- Leisure Isle Festival Book Sale
- Farewell to Pancake Team
- Upcoming Events
- Carols by Candle Light/Memory Candles
- Donor Club Appreciation events
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A day in the life of.... A Social Auxillary Worker
Qualifications needed?
You need Matric certificate and then a Social Auxillary Worker qualification.
Where did you train?
At C.E.F.A (Continuing Education For Africa)
What does your job entail…
I assist the full time social workers at Knysna Sedgefield Hospice by offering patients and their families holistic care. I also help patients with applications to old age homes (centres for the Aged). Occasionally patients need to be referred to other professionals and I assist with that. I run our OVC (Orphans and vulnerable children) programme for children linked to our patients by running puberty programmes, support groups and bereavement support. I also run adult bereavement support groups, parenting workshops and IACT (people infected and affected by HIV) support groups. An important part of my job is maintaining accurate statistics. I assist with poverty alleviation by identifying patients in need of material assistance and helping them with grants eg. disability grants. I also deliver food parcels to patients waiting for their social grants to come through. I am also able to help people in need of identity documents. An essential part of my job is attending in service training and any other relevant training related to addressing the psychosocial needs of our patients and their families. A large part of my job is networking with partner NPOs to help keep our community healthy and cared for.
Describe your average work day…
In the morning I come into our offices and plan and prioritise my patient’s needs and visits for the day. I drive a Hospice Tazz which I use to get to my patients and I help them in any way I can.
Best part of my job…
To be able to help patients/people where I can and to be able to see that they get the help that they need and that they are happy. I also enjoy the good relationship and communication that I have with my colleagues at Knysna Sedgefield Hospice. I enjoy going the extra mile for our patients, their families, the community and our organisation.
Worst part of my job…
The worst part of my job is identifying a patient who is in real need and they refuse or their family members don’t want other people involved. It feels so awful knowing that I can help someone but they won’t let me!
Why did you choose this career…
I love to help people, especially when they cannot help themselves. I love assisting and educating the community wherever I can. The thing I wish to see most in our community is people empowering and educating themselves.
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Sadly, the Knysna Sedgefield Hospice Pancake Team has retired. I interviewed Libby van Tonder whose initiative it was to start the Pancake Team and this is what she has to say about her truly valued contribution to our organistion over the years…
“I have always had a great interest in Hospice, but I really started feeling that I wanted to make a real contribution when my father died of cancer 9 years ago and Hospice played such a big role in terms of visiting him twice a day making sure that he was comfortable and secondly making sure that we as a family were informed of his condition and comforted at all times during that difficult time. They became a shoulder to lean on and as I have learnt over the years, the Hospice doctors, staff & nurses are true angels to each and every one who has dealings with the organization. I have learnt that Hospice takes care of all people who need palliative care and I’ve also realized that the time, hours & compassion involved from the side of Hospice is immeasurable and I wanted to be a part of that service and also to be able to make a financial contribution to the organisation.
I initially became a soup and bread volunteer where I provided about 5 litres of soup and 2 loaves worth of sandwiches every 2nd Tuesday. I did that for about 2-3 years until I took over the running of the library at Bond House.
I used to bake pancakes to raise funds when my children were little and in Primary School, then High School and thereafter sometimes when they needed a stand-in. The recipe originated from Mrs Suzette Cronje from the Knysna Primary School all those years ago. She was my son’s Std 1 teacher and that was when it all started! Because I was so familiar with this activity, I thought it a possibility once I realized that I couldn’t do the library as frequently as was needed. By that stage I knew who the strong Hospice supporters were within my circle of friends so it was easy to get a team of willing people together to support me in this drive.
There are so many people out there who like to do good or support charities and we did it in such a fun way that we often had to turn people away just because none of the team wanted to work shifts. They preferred to give it their all for as long as the event was running – made for sore feet & backs but very happy volunteers at the end of the day because we knew that we personally made all those pancakes. They were proud to be doing it and never wanted to be left out. They didn’t even want to leave their positions for a break in case somebody dared take their place! Many years of great fun and laughter was had while making very necessary money for Knysna Sedgefield Hospice. We have such a strong bond as the pancake team, and believe me, we were all tearful on Sunday (6th November 2016) when we finally hung up our boots.
To keep the queues short yet sell so many pancakes at the same time is always tricky as people can get sooooo impatient! The magic is in the person taking the orders and money to inform customers that there is a waiting time when we find that we are running behind. He/she will take their order and their money and give them an approximate time to come back for their pancakes. We often don’t have a chance to really build up stock but we also preferred not to keep them for too long because pancakes are at their best when freshly made.
We have been making pancakes to raise money for Knysna Sedgefield Hospice for about 3 years. We were involved at the Motor show for 2 days, the Hill Climb for the first time earlier this year (3 days) and the Leisure Isle Festival for 2 days. We had also had a stand during the Knysna marathon about 2 years ago where we did pancakes and prego rolls – it proved to be very successful and very busy.
We each mix and donate a batter to start the first day with and then it is up to the team to either get mixtures donated for the next day or to make up another mixture themselves at their own cost as and when needed. We do the same with the cinnamon and sugar, each member of the team is required to try and get some cash donations so that we end up having no expenses whatsoever. Everything we made goes directly to Knysna Sedgefield Hospice. We raised anything from R5000 to R8000 on very busy days but we have been known to do much less in the earlier days. We used to get excited about R3000! I would like to think the pancake team raised around the R400 000 mark over the years for Knysna Sedgefield Hospice and we are so proud to have been able to do this!”
Many thanks to Libby and her friends who raised money for the patients of Knysna Sedgefield Hospice. You will be so missed by us all and by many Knysna locals too!
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If you'd like to make a much needed donation to our organisation, our banking details are;
Banking details:
Nedbank,
Knysna Sedgefield Hospice,
acc no: 1089003145,
branch: 108-914,
Ref: Name.
Please email info@hospiceknysna.org.za with proof of payment with your contact details.
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Upcoming Events:
- 3 Dec - Street Collection (Knysna)
- 19 Dec - Carols by Candlelight (Knysna)
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Leisure Isle Festival
Another successful Leisure Isle Festival was had! Much needed funds were raised for Knysna Sedgefield Hospice and we thank our Knysna Events Team Volunteers, our donors and our loyal supporters for making this event a success once again!
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Knysna Donor Club Appreciation Event
On Thursday 17th November, Knysna Sedgefield Hospice hosted a small Donor Club appreciation event at the Knysna Bowling Club for members of our Donor Club. Donors were thanked for their committed support of Knysna Sedgefield Hospice and we said farewell and thank you to Annie Ogilvie who ran Donor Club for 10 years. The administration of the Donor Club has officially been handed over to Mariana de Lange from Knysna Sedgefield Hospice. We have had committed members who have been part of the club for years! Each entry into the quarterly draw costs R50 per month and you can buy as many entries as you like to increase your chance to win. Half of the money brought in by the Donor Club entries go directly into patient care, helping to create part of a sustainable income for Knysna Sedgefield Hospice, the rest goes into the draws. For more information on how to win up to R10 000 while supporting our organisation simultaneously, please contact Mariana at hospice@hospiceknysna.org.za or phone her on (044) 384 0593. Thank you to the staff that provided the snacks for the event.
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Sedgefield Donor Club Appreciation Event
Our Sedgefield Donor Club Appreciation event was held at the Sedgefield Bowling Club on Thurs 24th November 2016. It was a lovely event and a great opportunity to meet and chat to our faithful Donor Club members. Thank you to the staff who donated the eats and for all the Donor Club members who attended.
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Carols by Candlelight and Memory Candles
On Friday 16th December 2016 we will be having our annual Carols by Candle Light at Woodmill Lane, Knysna. As usual we will be selling Memory Candles as a fundraiser for those who have past and for those who are sick. There will be a ceremonial lighting of the candles and a carol service led by Rev. Rod Jamieson.
We ask the children attending to bring Father Christmas a wrapped gift for our Hospice children, those who are orphaned or those who will receive little or nothing at Christmas to remind our kiddies just how lucky they are during this time of consumerism.
Any grown up children who would like to bring a wrapped gift for our Hospice children are more than welcome as well!
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EVERY SWIPE COUNTS!
With so many business partners you can donate to Knysna Sedgefield Hopisce just by taking a card out of your purse! It's that easy!
My School/My Village has partnered with Woolworths, ToysRus, Engen Quick Shop, Waltons, Mugg and Bean, Altech Netstar, Flight Centre, Power24 and more!
To apply for a MySchool/My Village card please phone Ashleigh for an application form or fill one in at any Woolworths. If you already have a card, please check on line that Knysna Sedgefield Hospice is named as one of our beneficiaries. This is one of the projects that help us in becoming self sustainable
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S.A.R.D.A (South African Riding for the Disabled Association) held an end of year Christmas party for our Hospice children. These children were sponsored and chosen for this programme based on their specific needs. "Of special importance is the relationship between the rider and their horse. Which leads to calmness, a feeling of respect, self worth and confidence. It also improves fine motor skills, balance, coordination, listening skills and social cooperation." You can help us to continue offering this invaluable therapy to our Hospice children by making a donation into our account with S.A.R.D.A as your reference. Thank you to all those involved!! For more information on this programme please phone Anne on (044)384 0593 or email her at anne@hospiceknysna.org.za
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